The Forsaken Hero

The next day, I was summoned to appear in the Chapel of Councils, the general meeting room of the church. I was slightly nervous, as the only reason I had ever been regarded my slave crest, but refusing was impossible. Fortunately, by the time I climbed my way up from the slave quarters, I found the other nine heroes already assembled.

The gathering within the chapel was small, consisting of the heroes, the Pope, and a few Fathers. All of the clergy were unfamiliar, and their garb and accents differed greatly from the Fathers I knew who lived at the Divine Throne. Were we gathered for some sort of worldwide council?

”Welcome, Xiviyah,” the Pope said, gesturing to the only empty seat in their circle.

I nodded, cheeks reddening slightly as everyone’s eyes focused on me. ”I apologize for my late arrival,” I said, giving a slight curtsy. ”But I came as soon as I was summoned.”

”I didn’t ask for you to speak,” the pope said indifferently. The lack of apathy in his voice was intriguing, but I quickly sat down before studying him any further.

The Pope’s eyes were dim, and deep furrows etched themselves along his brow. When he spoke, he ended every sentence with a sigh, passing the baton over to a Father as soon as he could.

”Heroes, I thank you for taking the time to leave the festival and attend this meeting. This world lies in shadow, an encroaching evil that moves boldly even under the holy sun of the divine. Until this point, you’ve been scattered across the world, separately preparing for what is to come. I ask again that you leave this place. Not as students, but as heroes.”

At this point, the Pope nodded to a Father, who took over. ”Over the past year, monsters and cult activity have increased to the point local forces are being overwhelmed. Even with the additional support of the adventuring guild and mercenaries, humanity is being stretched thin. Soon, Demon Gates will appear, and the threat will truly begin.”

Alex raised his hand, brow scrunched in confusion. ”What exactly’s a demon gate?” he asked, wording the question most of us held.

The Father’s eyes widened slightly, and he glanced at the Pope. ”Surely you’ve been informed!”

”Well,” Alex said, glancing at the other heroes before shrugging. ”Surely we haven’t?”

The Pope took a deep breath, smoothing over his expression. ”Demon Gates are locations where the boundary between Enusia and the Demon’s world grows thin. Demons can tear the walls and form bubbles to transport them between worlds, similar to a carriage between towns.”

”Ah, so it’s like a subway,” Soltair said. ”The demons pile onto the train and then move to our world.”

The Father shook his head. ”I’m not sure I understand your reference, but the process of passing through the gate is complicated and takes time. Once the bubble reaches our world, it can begin the process of tearing into our world. As their attacks near completion, the gate begins to form. It is there that we must strike.”

Korra raised her hand like a schoolgirl, waiting for the Father’s nod before speaking. ”You’re saying we can invade their gate and kill the demons before they enter our world?”

”Indeed. Every gate has a magical core the Demons use to sustain their bubble. Destroy that, and the bubble collapses, killing everyone inside. The process is gradual, however, giving ample time for proper evacuation.

”Just like a dungeon!” Alex cried, pumping his fist into the air. ”Never thought playing so many MMOs would come in handy. Is there loot we get from closing a gate?”

The Father’s face turned to bafflement, and he looked at the others for help. Unfortunately, they all shrugged, looking just as confused.

”Alex,” Soltair said, ”Let’s keep this for afterward.”

”Fine, fine. But I’m getting the first clear, hear me?”

At this point, the first Father sat down, looking relieved his part was over. Another Father stood, taking a nervous breath before addressing us. I couldn’t tell if they were intimidated by our status or at dealing with our otherworldly ways.

”Demons feed on negative emotions, drawing strength from bloodshed and torture. As violent and fear-filled as our world is, this amount can do nothing but support low-level gates. They will be forced to send their fodder in with the hopes they can cause enough carnage and destruction to allow for stronger demons to slip through. Fortunately, this also gives you heroes time to learn their patterns and grow stronger as you prepare to face the powerful demon lords who will eventually come. Our ultimate goal is to defeat the Demon Emperor behind this invasion. Only then will our world be safe.”

”How do you know all this?” the Undead Hero, Connor, asked, looking at the assembled clergy suspiciously. ”It’s not like you’ve ever been attacked by the demon hordes before, so how reliable is this information?”

The Pope raised his head, emitting a small fraction of his aura. ”You would do well to refrain from challenging the omniscience of the gods. Did you think they would be so petty as to send us heroes but not the patterns of our enemies? As if they could be so shallow...”

I tilted my head, biting my tongue to keep from speaking. Judging by the awkward expressions on the faces of the others, I knew my thoughts weren’t alone. Still, as satisfying as breaking their faith would be, I didn’t want to deal with the ramifications.

”As I was saying,” the Father said once things calmed down, ”your role is to buy as much time for the world to prepare. The current political climate is relatively peaceful, but marshaling the strength of the world will take more time than we have.”

”Beyond that,” another Father chimed in, ”the demonic invasion has influenced the native evils of our world, spurring them to greater activity than ever before. In your travels, it is expected that you quell these threats wherever they may be. Overlook nothing, for what seems harmless to you might pose a great threat to countless small villages housing our people. As heroes, you will receive the full support of local governments and powers, including the adventuring guild and church in that region. Should any withhold their contributions without good reason, you are to treat them as allies of the demons and act accordingly.”

My spine tingled at his words, the full weight of their implications bearing down on me. As hopeful and inspiring as our mission was, the church was willing to stoop to any means to defeat the demons. The destruction of the Beast Kingdom was proof enough of that. I looked around, seeing the varied reactions of the other heroes. Although many would seek to be just and do good, others had too much potential to abuse that authority.

The Father continued, saying, ”Throughout this festival, the church’s Fathers will decide on your routes to protect against the greatest threats. Through divination magic, we can predict where the demon gates will occur with an accuracy of one month. When one appears, the nearest hero will be asked to drop everything, no matter its perceived import, and deal with it. Most Gates will open anytime after a week, depending on the strength of the beings inside. Treat them with the utmost caution, and call for support if needed. Although long-distance teleportation is extremely costly, it is worth sending an extra hero if it means delaying the invasion by even a little bit.”

The Pope cleared his throat as the Father sat down. ”Are there any other questions? If not, you may return to the festival. This is a holy time designated to worship the light that gives us life, and I recommend you take advantage of the occasion. It won’t be long before times like these will become a distant memory. Oh, one last thing,” he said, sweeping his eyes around the heroes. ”The tournament will take place as the concluding event for the festival, so be prepared. We will use it to determine the hierarchy of the heroes and evaluate your power levels so that we might best deploy you. Now, may the sun watch over you.”

I remained seated as the other heroes stand to leave. After all but Soltair had left, I stood and approached the Pope. Giving him a deep curtsy, I lowered my eyes respectfully.

”Holy One,” I said, trying to hide the nervous tremor in my voice. ”I, uh, have a request.”

The Pope looked at me for a time, then slowly nodded. ”Speak, slave.”

Releasing a pent-up breath, I kept my head lowered as I spoke. ”I would request that I not participate in the tournament. As you know, my situation has relegated me to a strictly supporting role, and I am unable to participate in direct combat.”

He sat back, rubbing his chin with the back of his hand. ”An unusual point, especially considering you’ve personally slain several of our devout acolytes and defeated the War Hero.”

”Your Holiness, I believe you understand the circumstances behind that,” I said evenly, praying he wouldn’t press the issue further.

A brief moment of indecision crossed his face, prompting Soltair to jump in. ”Pope, surely your goals for her have been completed. Even if she participates, and ends up defeated, would that have a greater effect than the way you humiliated her last night?”

A slight shudder ran through me at Soltair’s sharp words, and I didn’t know whether to be grateful or resent them. I settled on gratitude, just in time for the Pope to close his eyes.

”Very well,” he said. ”Although you are a slave, I shall grant this one request. As explained our purposes are twofold, but I suppose your participation is unnecessary on both accounts. All are aware you are the worst hero, and thus at the bottom of the hierarchy, and you will travel alongside Soltair, meaning we do not need to evaluate your strengths. Even if you could close Demon Gates on your own, I couldn’t possibly allow you contact with demons without close supervision.”

”Thank you, Holy One,” I said, dropping lower in my curtsy. As cruel as his words were, I inwardly celebrated.

”If that’s all, then be gone. We have much more to discuss.”

Soltair and I left, scurrying out of the hall before he changed his mind. ”I thought you were a goner,” he said, smiling in relief.

”Me too. I didn’t think that would work, but I’m glad it did. Thanks for backing me up,” I said.

We descended the stairs quickly, splitting off to go prepare for the day of celebration. Although I knew he intended to get out into the city and party, I didn’t have that luxury. With only a week until the festival ended, it was time for my training to finally get serious.